Sam Fender has axed his upcoming US tour dates to look after his mental health.
The singer, 28, was due to play Portland, Seattle, and Vancouver this month, and was set to supporting Florence and the Machine at New York City’s Madison Square Garden.
But he said in an Instagram statement on Monday evening (12.09.22) about his plans to cancel the shows for the sake of his mental health: “It seems completely hypocritical of me to advocate discussion on mental health and write songs about it if I don’t take the time to look after my own mental health.
“I’ve neglected myself for over a year now and haven’t dealt with things that have deeply affected me.
“It’s impossible to do this work on myself while on the road, and it’s exhausting feigning happiness and wellness for the sake of business.”
He added to his 841,000 followers on the platform he was “eternally overwhelmed by the love and support of our fans” and said he hated to let them down.
But he added “the state of my wellbeing is starting to affect everything I do, including my performances (and) I refuse to go out there and not give it my all EVERY time, as you all deserve nothing less”.
He also said his UK record store dates will not go ahead, but added he hoped he “can work something out for those ticket holders” and promised “you’ll hear from us soon”.
Sam said he was “super excited” to play Australia in late November and “everything to come in 2023” as he expected his scheduled show at St James Park, London, to be “f****** unbelievable”.
He went on in his post, on a black background with white text: “I can’t express how grateful we are to have such an awesome fan base. I’ve met a fair few of you over the years and those encounters have genuinely restored my faith in humanity, you’re all sound as f***. Me and the boys are burnt out and need this time. Thank you for always sticking by us.”
He signed off with a heart emoji.
Among the flood of support in his comments section was a message from Gwyneth Paltrow, 49, who said: “This is beautiful. We (heart emoji) you. Look after yourself.”
Sam has supported mental health awareness through his music, and in 2018 told NME about addressing mental health struggles in his single ‘Dead Boys’.
He said: “I remember specifically for me as a kid growing up or as a young teenager if I ever cried or got upset in front of anybody, I would be so humiliated.
“I’d be so angry with myself for being upset and then it would just become this Catch-22 situation.
“It’s that attitude that stops men from talking and stops men from being like able to turn to each other. Me and my mates are very, very close. We all talk about our problems – especially as we’ve got older. But I don’t think a lot of people have that.
“Men just need to be open and not emasculate one another.”